Clock mountings

ABSTRACT

To make the time and the shut-off controls of an alarm clock easily available to a sleeper, the invention combines a mounting structure which is to be fixed to a wall, headboard of a bed, or simply placed on the floor, with an elongate and flexible arm or conduit which extends from the mounting structure to a holder for an alarm clock. The holder may have the form of a clamp capable of holding a clock in desired position, but in preferred form that holder comprises the case of the clock.

United States Patent 1 Ethier 41 CLOCK MOUNTINGS [76] lnventor: EugeneL. Ethier, 216 West Simmons Avenue, Anaheim, Calif.-

[22] Filed: Dec. 16, 1971 [21] Appl. No.: 208,724

[52] US. Cl ..58/56, D42/7 l-l, 248/116 [51] Int. Cl. ..-...G04b 37/14[58] Field of Search 58/53-56; 248/114-116; D42/7, 7.8; 240/52 BL, 81 P,81 BD [56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,535,085 4/1925Bamberger ..248/115 2,538,449 1/1951 Freshwater... ..248/1 15 1,884,75610/1932 Hodny ..58/56 X 1,790,500 1/1931 Fischer ..240/8l BD 1 Apr. 17,1973 2,598,978 6/1952 De Martin ..248/1|4 X 3,191,901 6/1965 Green..58/56 X D203,941 3/1966 Jafie ..D42/7 Primary ExaminerRichard B.Wilkinson Assistant Examiner-Lawrence R. Franklin Attorney-Harvey C.Nienow et a1.

[ ABSTRACT To make the time and the shut-off controls of an alarm clockeasily available to a sleeper, the invention combines a mountingstructure which is to be fixed to a wall, headboard of a bed, or simplyplaced on the floor, with an elongate and flexible arm or conduit whichextends from the mounting structure to a holder for an alarm clock. Theholder may have the form of a clamp capable of holding a clock indesired position, but in preferred form that holder comprises the caseof the clock.

5 Claim, 6 Drawing Figures CLOCK MOUNTINGS This invention relates toimprovements in clock cases and clock holders.

Turning off an alarm clock is an inconvenience. Attempting to discoverwhat time it is prior to the alarm going off, or after the alarm hasgone off, is also an inconvenience when the clock is at the side of ofones bed. A substantial amount of work has been done to eliminate theraucous clang of early alarm clocks. One can buy a clock whose alarm isvariable in loudness, whose alarm rings over a series of short intervalsseparated by longer quiet times, whose alarm rings at intervals andbecome louder at each ring, and whose alarms buzz or chime rather thanclang. In some cases, the bell or buzzer has been replaced with a radiowhich is turned on when the alarm is to sound. Some of these alarm clockradios include a provision for increasing volume with time if the alarmis not turned off;

It is true that some alarm clocks include turnoff bars or turn-offbuttons or turn-off handles, but in general little has been done torelieve the newly-awakened sleeper of the task of groping for the clockand its turnoff mechanism. It is an object to provide an alarm clock andmounting arrangement by which the clock can conveniently be held withinthe sleepers reach and view but which will yield upon being pushed. Itis an object to provide a mounting arrangement that will yield withoutfalling or otherwise risking injury to clock or sleeper, either one.Certain of these objects, and others which will hereinafter appear, arerealized in the invention, at least in part, by the provision of a clockmounted upon a yieldable arm whereby the overhead position of the clockcan be adjusted and whereby it will simply move out of harm's way uponbeing struck.

Certain embodiments of the invention are illustrated in the accompanyingdrawings. It is to be understood that various other modifications arepossible within the invention.

In the drawings:

FIG. I is a pictorial view of an alarm clock and support combinationthat embodies the invention;

F IG. 2 is a fragment of a portion of the apparatus of FIG. 1 shownenlarged and partly in section;

FIG. 3 is a view in side elevation of a clock and radio supportstructure embodying the invention;

FIG. 4 is a bottom view of the apparatus of FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is an exploded view of an alternative form of bracket useful inthe invention; and

FIG. 6 is an illustration of another kind of clock and mountingarrangement embodying the invention.

In FIG. 1 the numeral 10 generally designates an alarm clock whose face12 extends downwardly and which has generally conventional form exceptthat its case 14 is formed with a section 16 at its upper side (the sidenearest the numeral 12 of the face) by which it is connected to asection of flexible metal conduit 18. The conduit is connected by athreaded metal ferrule 20 to the inner rod 22 of a telescopic standwhose tubular lower end 24 is fixed to a base 25 by which the unit canrest on the floor next to a sleeper's bed or next to a sleepers chair.The hollow rod 22 telescopes within the tube 24 and is held in selectedposition by a clamp 26 which serves to force the split upper end of thetube into firm contact with the outer surface of the rod when the clampis tightened down. The clock is electrically powered. Power is suppliedby a cord 28 which enters the base 25 and passes up through the tube 24and the interior of the hollow rod 22 and the interior of the flexibleconduit 18 and through the mounting structure 16 to the interior of theclock where it is connected to the clock motor and to a bulb by whichthe clock face is illuminated.

The clock It) can be raised or lowered at will by raising or loweringthe rod 22 and clamping it into selected position.

To some extent the height of the clock can also be adjusted by changingthe manner in which the gooseneck or flexible conduit 18 is bent.However, the primary purpose of that conduit is not to accomplish heightadjustment of the clock but rather to enable one lying below it to reachup and push it out of the way or to draw it back at will into viewableposition. That conduit is sufficiently flexible so that the clock willmove easily out of the way if a sleeper should contact it with his armswhereby both the arm and the clock are saved from harm. While notvisible in FIG. 1, the back of the clock is fitted with a set ofcustomary clock controls including a knob by which to set the time andanother to set the time at which the alarm is wanted and another torender the alarm system operable or inoperable. The small control 30 atthe top of the clock controls power to the lamp so that the illuminationcan be turned on and off at will.

Having awakened during the night, one need only reach up and turn on theswitch 30 to illuminate the clock and discover the time. whereupon hecan extinguish the light and return to sleep. Upon being wakened by thealarm, he need only reach up and actuate the mechanism that turns offthat alarm. If the clock is in the way when he arises, he need only pushit aside to bend the flexible conduit 18 to a different shape. In thepreferred form of the invention, that conduit is sufficiently stiff toremain substantially in the position to which it is bent, althoughbending it requires but a little force.

It is not essential that the clock be positioned directly over thesleepers head. In this embodiment, the clock case is rotatable about anaxis through the clock from top to bottom. The structure that permitsthat rotation is visible in FIG. 2. The flexible conduit 18 terminatesin a truncated, washer-like conical fitting 40 from which a threadednipple 41 extends. The case 14 is molded of a plastic material. At itsupper end the case has a truncated pyramidal section 42, the outer faceof which is reentrant at 44 to form a sleeve which is internallythreaded so that it can be threaded on to the nipple 41 as shown. Thathaving been done, a plastic nut 46 is threaded onto the end of thenipple. The nut has a through opening, part of which is threaded and isthreadedly engaged upon the nipple. The remainder of the through openinghas smaller diameter whereby a shoulder is formed at 48 which limits thedegree in which the nut 46 can be threaded onto the nipple. The spacebetween the upper face of the nut 46 and the lower face of the truncatedconical washer 40 is slightly greater than the length of the sleeve 44.The result is that the case 14 can be rotated relative to the nipple 42until either the washer 40 or the nut 46 is engaged. The object is tolimit rotation of the clock to less than 360 less the cord be twisted.To insure that the spacing is controlled to this end without imposingexcessively difficult manufacturing dimensional tolerance, washers 4Sand 47 are added and selected for their thickness.

The sleeve 44 is sufficiently long so that the case cannot be wiggled atthe point of connection to the nipple and so that there is enoughfriction between the threads of the nipple and the threads of the caseso that the case will remain in any rotational position in which .it isplaced. The inner edge of the nut lip is rounded away to prevent chafingof the wires that will extend through these several parts to theinterior of the case for connection to the clock.

The clock need not be mounted on a stanchion or post. The embodiments ofFIGS. 3, 4' and 6 are arranged for mounting on a wall or the headboardofa bed or some vertical surface. In FIG. 3 the plate 50 is provided withperforations (not shown) by which it may be screwed to a wall or theheadboard of a bed. The plate carries a radio 52 which is powered by acord 54 which enters at the bottom of the radio and supplies energy bothto the radio and to the clock 56. The clock is mounted at the end of ametal gooseneck 58 which extends from the connection 60. That connection60 is secured to the radio case. The tuning dial of the radio isidentified by the reference numeral 62. A volume control 64 and-an alarmbutton 66 completes the control parts of the radio. Clock 56 carries twocontrols, one 68 of which is a switch by which the lamp within the clockcan be turned on and off. The other control 70 is visible in FIG. 4. Itis used to reset the digital time display. The digits are mounted onindividual wheels which are interconnected by a Geneva gearing system toa common drive motor. The clock is conventional. It will be apparentthat the radio and the clock could be combined in a single case orotherwise arranged together at the outer end of the gooseneck 58. Inthat case, the inner end of the gooseneck would be connected directly tothe wall mounting plate 50 or, alternatively, would be connected to astanchion which might be similar to that shown in FIG. 1.

The flexible arm on which the clock is mounted need not be a flexiblecoiled metal or plastic gooseneck. Stiff arms coupled to swivels anduniversal joints are also useful within the invention. An embodiment inthat form is shown in FIG. 6 where the clock is housed in a bulbous case70 behind a transparent face 72 and an escutcheon plate 74. The alarmtime set knob 76 and the alarm on-off lever 78 extend through the rearpor tion of the case where they are visible in FIG. 6. At its lower end,the case 70 is connected to a universal joint 80 whose other end isconnected to a rigid tube 82. The other end of the tube is connected toa swivel 84. The swivel housing is fixed by any convenient means, suchas by welding as shown, to a mounting plate 86 by which the unit can bemounted upon a wall or the headboard of a bed. The clock is powered froman electrical source through a cord 90 which enters the unit at thelower side of the swivel housing.

An alternative arrangement is shown in FIG. 5. Here the flexible conduit92 enters a small housing 94 that serves as an electrical box and theanchor point for two screws 96. The screws extend through the slot 98formed in corresponding legs of two L-shaped members. These members arearranged so that their slotted arms overlie one another and so thattheir other arms lie op site one another. The screws 96 extend throu hthe sots mto threaded openings in the housing 4.

members can be moved somewhat to adjust the spacing between the oppositearms 104 and 106. These arms are perforated and have thumbscrews turnedinto them. Thumbscrew 108 is turned into arm 104 and thumbscrew 110 isturned into arm 106. The two thumbscrews clamp down on a clock placedbetween the arms 104 and 106. The electric cord by which the clock ispowered extends down through the opening 112 in the upper wall of thehousing 94 and fence out the conduit 92 to a supply connection. A clockmounted between the thumbscrews 108 and 1 10 will be held in whateverposition it is clamped by those thumbscrews, although, of course, itsposition can be adjusted.

Although I have shown and described certain specific embodiments of myinvention, I am fully aware that many modifications thereof arepossible. My invention, therefore, is not to be restricted exceptinsofar as is necessitated by the prior art.

I claim:

' 1. In an apparatus for holding a clock positioned face down over abed, a support structure, a clamp holder and a connecting means forconnecting said support structure and clamp holder such that therelative position of the clamp holder and support structure may bealtered, said clamp holder comprising a U-shaped clamp having spaced,opposed arms and means for altering and spacing of said arms, saidconnecting means comprising a flexible, goose neck conduit.

2. In combination:

a clock;

a support structure; and

a connecting means for connecting the clockand support structure suchthat the relative position of the clock and support structure may bechanged, the connecting means comprising an elongate flexible conduit. Ij

3. The invention defined in claim 2 in which the support structurecomprises a base and a pole extending upwardly from the base, theflexible conduit being connected to the upper end of the pole.

4. The invention defined in claim 2 in which said clock is mounted facedown to said conduit and has a swiveled connection to said conduit.

5. In combination;

a clock;

a support structure; and

a connecting means for connecting the clock and support structure suchthat the relative position of the clock and support structure may bechanged;

said support structure comprising means in the form of a plate forattachment to a vertical surface and said connecting means comprising aflexible, goose neck conduit.

1. In an apparatus for holding a clock positioned face down over a bed,a support structure, a clamp holder and a connecting means forconnecting said support structure and clamp holder such that therelative position of the clamp holder and support structure may bealtered, said clamp holder comprising a U-shaped clamp having spaced,opposed arms and means for altering and spacing of said arms, saidconnecting means comprising a flexible, goose neck conduit.
 2. Incombination: a clock; a support structure; and a connecting means forconnecting the clock and support structure such that the relativeposition of the clock and support structure may be changed, theconnecting means comprising an elongate flexible conduit.
 3. Theinvention defined in claim 2 in which the support structure comprises abase and a pole extending upwardly from the base, the flexible conduitbeing connected to the upper end of the pole.
 4. The invention definedin claim 2 in which said clock is mounted face down to said conduit andhas a swiveled connection to said conduit.
 5. In combination; a clock; asupport structure; and a connecting means for connecting the clock andsupport structure such that the relative position of the clock andsupport structure may be changed; said support structure comprisingmeans in the form of a plate for attachment to a vertical surface andsaid connecting means comprising a flexible, goose neck conduit.